


Well If You Wanted Honesty

by PagebyPaige



Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: (do I really have to tag that), (loose interpretation), Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - I'm Not Okay Video, First Kiss, Fluff, Highschool AU, M/M, Marriage, Oneshot, This is so cliche, Time Skips, Underage Smoking, this is a shitstorm, this was honestly just a writing exercise so I'm sorry for everything
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-17
Updated: 2017-06-17
Packaged: 2018-11-02 04:19:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10936869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PagebyPaige/pseuds/PagebyPaige
Summary: A cliché highschool AU mostly compliant with the I'm Not Okay 'verse. Frank and Gerard meet for the first time, officially, in a very strange way.





	Well If You Wanted Honesty

**Author's Note:**

> Gerard is a senior here, and he's 17. Frank is a sophomore, and he's 16. They ARE NOT together during the period while Gerard is 18 and Frank is 17.
> 
> I told myself I'd never do this but here I am.
> 
> Enjoy!

Gerard doesn't want to get up. Being 6:30 on a Monday morning, who could blame him? He eventually drags himself up at the smell of fresh coffee being brewed upstairs. _Probably Mikey._ He slides off his bed and fumbles for some somewhat-clean jeans in the darkness. He throws them on and a shirt that doesn't smell too bad and stumbles up the steps, never bothering to turn on the lights.

When Gerard opens the door into his brightly lit kitchen he's delighted to find a well-combed Mikey standing next to a burbling coffee machine. Mikey fills two mugs and hands one to the still mostly asleep Gerard and they sit down together for some slightly burnt toast and coffee. For about five minutes.

"Come on, Gerard! You're driving me and I wanna be early to see Ray."

"I'm coming, okay? Just give me a second!" Gerard yells at his brother from the depths of his basement cave. He throws his books into his backpack, laces up his Chucks and attempts to comb his greasy black-dyed hair into something presentable. Bangs hanging in his eyes, Gerard pounds his way back up the stairs and grabs his keys off the counter. Mikey follows him out they door and they climb into Gerard's car.

The car ride passes in their usual awkward brotherly silence. Gerard lets out Mikey at the front door and then drives around back where seniors park their cars. He slips in the back door, still a little early since seniors have class later than everyone else. Gerard sees the other early seniors socializing in clumps along the hallway. He doesn't really have any friends to socialize with, so he sits against his locker, drawing. The bell rings and Gerard shoves the notebook into his bag, not wanting to be teased for drawing the sophomore boy he doesn't even know the name of.

He runs across the hall to English class and he spends the entire time zoning out and thinking about the object of his sketch. He would really like to meet the cute boy in his brother's class, the one who looks about as outcast as Gerard himself.

When the bell rings, releasing Gerard from the syntax prison, he glances at his books and thinks about where he's headed next. He'll definitely need to stop at his locker, something he usually tries to avoid, considering how vulnerable he is with his back to the busy hallway.

He's in a hurry, barely looking as he turns the dials of his combination lock. He is already practically shoving his books into his locker before it is even open, so when it finally swings forward he almost breaks the nose of the boy who comes tumbling out. _The_ boy. Gerard steps back, startled, and the kid crashes to the floor.

He crams his books into his locker before turning to the boy who is already half up, ready to sprint off. The bullies really like this kid, Gerard can tell. He has tattoos and a lip ring, not to mention half his head shaved. He's almost intimidating, even though Gerard's chin is level with his forehead. He's the kind of punk who fights back and gets kicked around. That's how he must've ended up in Gerard's locker for fuck knows how long. That's also how, upon closer inspection, Gerard finds the word fag scribbled on his face in Sharpie where it was previously covered by his hair.

Gerard is ready to fry the balls off of whoever did this to the kid, but he knows he never could. Instead, he offers his hand, pulling the kid to his feet. The poor boy recoils, obviously anticipating a blow.

"I'm not gonna hurt you," Gerard reassures him. "What's your name?"

"Frank." He stands back now, trying to look tough.

"Hi Frank, I'm Gerard. I, uh, I'm sorry you ended up in my locker _oh yeah also you're really pretty too but don't mind me I'm just a creepy senior_." The last part stays safely in Gerard's thoughts.

Frank looks awkwardly down, his gaze catching on Gerard's sketchbook. Gerard sees where Frank has diverted his eyes to and hurriedly pulls the sketchbook to his chest though he knows it's no use - Frank has seen himself badly sketched in the notebook of a lonely senior and now he's going to think Gerard is a creep and never talk to him again.

Gerard turns around, snatches his math book and hurries off down the hallway, leaving Frank standing awkwardly against the locker that still hangs partly ajar.

Trying to sit through calculus is a nightmare when Gerard can't stop thinking about that sophomore boy - Frank - and that scene with his locker. He wonders if the kid hates him now. Maybe he can find out from Mikey?

Gerard can't decide whether to be sad or thankful that he doesn't see him for the rest of the school day.

When he gets home, though, he finds that, true to his text, Ray drove Mikey to the Way house and they're fucking around on guitar and bass (respectively) in Gerard's living room. About to go lock himself in the basement because this is a regular occurrence, Gerard spies another guitar. White, beaten and scratched up, and definitely not Ray's brown Strat. He does a double take, spinning back around and looking at Mikey and Ray trying to synchronize their strumming. As if on cue, a certain tattooed sophomore walks out of the bathroom and picks up the white guitar.

"You, uh, live here?" Frank asks him dumbly, fiddling with his guitar strap.

"Y-yeah," Gerard replies, cursing himself for stuttering. "Well I'm just gonna go now..." Gerard awkwardly exits and skitters down the basement stairs into the safety of his bedroom.

He's just getting ready to put on some Misfits and try to forget about his weird ass day when he hears his bedroom door squeaking open.

"Hi, um, sorry if I'm interrupting something..." Frank peeks his head around Gerard's door.

"No, yeah, it's fine, I'm not doing anything," Gerard says a bit too quickly.

"Sorry, I just, um, wanted to thank you." Frank still remains awkwardly in the doorway.

"What for?" Gerard asks, genuinely surprised. "And you can come in, by the way." Frank shuffles his way into the dimly lit, cluttered room.

"That, uh, drawing? Sorry if you didn't want me to see it, or something, but it was really good." Gerard can feel himself blushing and he is extremely glad suddenly for his poor lighting.

"Thank you," he says sincerely.

"Yeah, no problem. Any reason you're drawing me?" Gerard wants to slap himself with something very heavy right about now.

"Well you have a good bone structure, and your tattoos are a challenge, andyourecute..." Gerard mutters the end of his sentence, trailing off and trying to resist suffocating himself in his bedsheets.

"I'm what?" Frank sounds genuinely curious.

"You're cute." Gerard sighs and hangs his head. "Sorry if that's creepy y'know, 'cause I'm a senior and I don't even know you and I'm drawing you and-"

"Gerard," Frank interrupts finally.

"Sorry." He looks down.

"No, it's okay. I think you're cute too." It's Frank's turn to blush now. They both kind of stare dumbly at the ground until Gerard speaks again.

"So does this mean I can..." Gerard flicks his eyes up to Frank's lips.

Frank nods vigorously, inches from Gerard's face. It's short and chaste, but Frank feels fireworks from kissing the boy he's had a crush on since he started high school.

"Hey Frank!" Mikey yells from upstairs.

"Fuck!" Frank curses, disentangling himself from Gerard and rushing upstairs. "I wasn't supposed to be down here this long."

He jogs up the stairs, leaving Gerard alone, still reeling from the kiss.

He hears Mikey and Ray teasing Frank for ditching them for Gerard. _They have no idea,_ he thinks to himself a bit smugly. Soon enough, he hears Frank and Ray exit his home and he finally starts doing his homework. Well, he tries to do his homework. He ends up just drawing Frank again.

At school the next day, Frank meets him at his locker.

"Hi," Gerard says, not really sure what the proper etiquette is for talking to your brother's friend you kissed in your basement yesterday.

"Hi yourself," Frank says, smiling softly.

"When does class start for you? I've got another hour," Gerard tells him.

"I've got about 20 minutes, I came early to see you."

"Since I'm not gonna bring up the flawed logic there, wanna have a smoke outside? Shit, I probably shouldn't be offering cigarettes to a sophomore."

"Would I get to kiss you again?"

Gerard smirks at him. "I don't know. You find out."

They walk out the back door of the school and lean together against the brick wall facing the senior parking lot. Soon enough they're kissing against the wall, completely absorbed in each other and the smell of cigarettes.

"Oh, hey Gerard..." Gerard immediately spins from where he was pushing Frank up against the wall to find... his brother? "I was just going to get my binder out of your car but I'll just, uh, leave you to it." Mikey awkwardly sidles back through the door.

"Fuck!" Frank and Gerard say at the same time.

"My brother just saw me making out with his friend!"

"My friend just saw me making out with his brother!"

Gerard leans their foreheads together.

"Fuck," he breathes, lighting another cigarette. Frank pulls it from between his lips and takes a drag. They kiss again, lightly, and then re-enter the building to go find Mikey and apologize.

\---

When they get back to Gerard's house Ray and Mikey are already fucking around in the living room. They go straight to the basement and just talk. And eventually watch the majority of Gerard's movie collection while lying upside down in his bed. Mikey doesn't seem quite as upset, but still just as uncomfortable, now that Frank and Gerard have apologized. He even smiles a little when they come up the stairs holding hands.

 

They spend the next few years practically living in Gerard's basement bedroom. Frank and Gerard are easily best friends and adorable boyfriends, hanging off of each other at every possible moment. Moments turn to days and days turn to years and suddenly Frank's graduated and they're looking at apartments. Together.

"I can't believe we're moving in together!" Frank's bouncing on his feet at the door of this one, excited still about the fact that they'll be living together.

"Not like we haven't been already," Gerard grumbles, but he's secretly just as excited as his boyfriend. He remembers the year they separated because when he turned 18 he couldn't stand the fact that he was an adult and his boyfriend was a child, so they broke up for the few long months until Frank too was 18. He never wants to be apart from him again. Ever.

Now Frank's not turning 18, he's turning 24, and Gerard is closing in on 26. In his birthday cake, Frank finds a ring. The only thing he can get out before he starts crying is, "seriously?" Then he's nearly choking on cake and crying and he's never said the word yes this many times in his life. Suddenly Gerard is kissing him, cake and all, and they're both crying.

"How the fuck did this happen?" Frank asks over a mouthful of cake now that his tears have stopped.

"What?" Gerard asks, also through cake.

"I've been living in an apartment with my boyfriend for two years, he's signed to fucking DC Comics, and I'm engaged at 24." Gerard doesn't respond, just raises and eyebrow as if to says is that such a bad thing? "It's amazing, really, it's all I could ever ask for, it's just crazy is all." Frank spins the ring on his finger as they eat. He sees Gerard watching him do it.

"Y'know," he says, "you, asshole, didn't even propose. You just put dangerous metal objects in my food!" Gerard laughs at that, and then drops to one knee.

"I had a speech, just in case..."

"Fucker!" Frank exclaims, giggling.

"Well do you want it, or...?" Frank nods vigorously. "Okay, um, Frank Iero, you've been my boyfriend since I creeped on you in highschool, and stole you away from my brother, and kinda kidnapped you and now you live with me, and I was wondering if you'd for some reason like to let me harass you forever?"

"Well since I've already said yes..." Frank trails off. "I'll say it again. Yes, you fucker. I wouldn't want to suffer through life with anyone else." And then Mikey walks in.

"Stop walking in on us during important moments!" Gerard exclaims, exasperated, and they all bust out laughing. Mostly because he's still on one knee. "Never shoulda given him the spare key," Gerard mutters under his breath right as Mikey speaks.

"At least you're not kissing this time," Mikey says.

"Oh, we can fix that," Frank says, pulling Gerard up and kissing him gently. Not ten seconds later they hear the door to their apartment slam shut.

"I love you," Gerard tells him affectionately, still basically sitting on Frank's lap.

"I love you too," Frank says just as sincerely, and they spend the rest of the afternoon laughing and feeding each other cake.

"We're so ridiculous," Gerard says, laughing through the last of the cake.

"Ridiculous and engaged," Frank says, still trying out the word.

"Yeah." Gerard sighs contentedly. "We are, aren't we."

\---

When they wake up a few weeks later, Frank has an idea.

"We should get a dog."

"No," Gerard says without even rolling over.

"I'll put my lip ring back in..." Frank taunts.

"I'll consider it."

"We could name him Rufus, and he could bark when you get home so you can't scare the shit out of me, and he could have a little bed..."

"It does sound pretty cute..." Gerard says, and he and Frank both know he's won over now. He really was gone at the lip ring, but it was nice to hear Frank plead.

\---

When Rufus is a year old, Frank insists they throw him a party.

"He's like our child," Gerard comments offhandedly at said party. At this, though, Frank's eyes light up.

"You're right!" He grins. But then he gets that look, and Gerard knows he's fucked. "But you know, Gerard," he says, smirking slightly, "He's a bastard child."

"What are you implying, Frankie?" Gerard asks, his tone playfully dangerous.

"I'm implying that we shouldn't raise a bastard child, now should we?" Gerard wants to kiss the smirk off of Frank's face.

"And how might we avoid that, hm?" He asks, playing along.

"Well," Frank says, pretending to contemplate, "Typically these situations are resolved with... weddings."

"Oh? Well, we might have to resolve this situation then, I suppose?" Gerard's lips curl into a sweeter smile. "I can't believe Rufus just got us married." Frank's smirk drops into a grin.

"I knew the little fucker'd be good for somethin'," he smiles smugly.

"Oh don't you start," Gerard says, already laughing.

"So who's wearing the dress?" Frank asks, breaking their laughter.

"What?"

"Don't tell me you didn't think I'd try to get you into a wedding dress, Gee!" Gerard just smiles and shakes his head.  
  
"I've had the suit picked out since we moved into this place. You're not changin' my mind."

"Okay, fine. Mikey wears the dress."

"Mikey wears the dress," Gerard agrees, giggling. "Let's plan our fucking wedding."

**Author's Note:**

> comments and kudos are much appreciated


End file.
